Sunrise, Sunset
by A Paper Moon
Summary: She would be with him... with every morning and every night. Chrono Crusade: A One-Shot. Warnings: Slightly AU as you'll see when you read, spoilers for both manga and anime, and character death. Please enjoy. Grazie! :D


**Warnings/Disclaimers: **I am _now _aware of how this anime-slash-manga ended but I had already written this so deal! :D Please, just pretend that (for those who _do_ know the ending) it hasn't happened yet...? Um, I guess this would be slightly AU then. If you have an questions involving _anything_, please feel free to ask. Also, I apologize for any spelling and/or grammatical errors. If you spot any errors in names, places, spelling and/or grammatical issues, please **let me know. **Even though the ending is not the "true" ending, there are still parts of this story that do give away spoilers from both the manga and the anime. You have been warned. All characters of Chrono Crusade are the property of Daisuke Moriyama; I allege no possession of said characters. I only request to take them to over-rowdy soccer games and force them to play at gunpoint. Please enjoy :D

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_The darkness of night was consuming the world around it sending it, and everyone, into a shroud of black abyss._

_As people across the eastern seaboard started turning the lights off for another day, four people were too spent with the days events to notice the lack of luminosity in the world outside. To there dismay, even the young girl they had all cared for was beginning to lose her usually glowing characteristics._

_Two of the four friends had all settled down in comfortable seats, (as comfy as stiff, hospital chairs could be), and awaited the inevitable. As the sun embarked on the end of its life cycle, another was following suit._

**_*_**

**Sunrise, Sunset  
**_Un Amore per le Età_

_*****_

* * *

A young, violet-haired demon paced quietly in the back corner of the stark white hospital room. A deep, slightly anguished, growl resonated in the back of his throat. The golden-haired girl that he had fallen in love with, was dying before his eyes and there was _nothing_ that he could do about it. In fact, her impending death had been caused by his selfishness.

Snowy-white locks brushed porcelain cheeks as the young apostle cried helplessly into her hands. An older brunette, placed a comforting arm around the girl's slim shoulders. She herself, was trying her hardest to keep the overwhelming wave of emotions in check. Seeing the pale girl breakdown in front of her, the woman lost her composure and allowed several tears to run down her face.

The only occupant of the room that was short of showing any emotion, was leaning against the bland walls that surrounded and seemed to suffocate the group. The only other male in the room, a tall blonde, crossed his arms over his chest, dipping his head so no one could see the surging emotions rack his body. Just because he wasn't showing his emotions, didn't mean that he wasn't feeling anything at all!

The band of friends had already encountered enough in the past few months and this had only succeeded in devastating them further. Only five weeks ago, another of their close friends had been taken away from them during the fight to stop Pandemonium. Satella Harvenheit had been killed in a duel with, who at the time had thought to have been, her sister, Fiore. Her death shocked everyone who knew her; this was not a woman who died easily. Rosette Christopher, one of Satella's closest friends, was crushed when the news arrived of the Jewel Witch's departure from the living.

Now though, it was Rosette's turn to join the astral line once again. Previously born as Mary Magdalene, the nun had graced the world, this time as bubbly, over dramatic, enthusiastic, affectionate, sometimes violent, always caring, trigger-happy, Rosette Christopher. Now though, their cheerful Rosette was dying before their very eyes. These next hours were going to feel like an eternity; an eternity that no one in the room wanted to take part in.

The sun finally dipped behind the horizon calling the end ever closer. Unable to take the silence any longer, the straw-haired male cleared his throat, as if to test the water, before diving right in.

"We... we should say a few words about her. Rosette... she was—"

"She is_ not_ dead yet!" All heads snapped to the amethyst-eyed devil who had stopped pacing. His blood red eyes glowed in revulsion, staring down the male exorcist daring him to argue him. His fists were brought to his side, his nails digging into his palms sending trickles of blood flowing down to the floor. Everyone saw how much this situation was slowly killing him inside.

"Ch-Chrono..." a small voice stuttered in the corner. The fair-haired apostle let her hands drop from her face revealing a pair red-rimmed eyes; tears were still making their way down her pale face. Immediately, Chrono released his death-like grip on his hands, loosening and brushing them against his crimson jacket. Sister Kate gasped at the cuts that covered his palms.

"Az." The young devil tried to smile though he failed miserably. The room grew silent with the exception of the slow ticking sound that continued its constant beat. Every once and a while, the sound of the small watch would synchronize with the steady heartbeat of the watch's owner. That small sound made Chrono sick; how could something so diminutive hold such a terrorizing grip on everyone it came in contact with?

Allowing his gaze to shift from the miniature timekeeper to the sickly looking girl that had had her entire life controlled by the godforsaken timepiece, Chrono scanned her features gasping everytime he stumbled onto something that had previously been overlooked. Her breaths were coming in short, quick bursts, her usually glowing skin was pale and clammy looking, and her normally resilient golden locks, were unkempt and in disarray. Beads of sweat rolled down her face; her hairline was shining with perspiration. Feeling as though he had been repeatedly punched in the stomach, Chrono closed his eyes hoping to erase the image before him.

Suddenly, the saffron-haired girl gasped, her once motionless body recoiled violently. Rosette cried out, her body arching forward sending her back completely off the hospital bed she was laying on. Chrono immediately rushed to her side as he grasped her pale hand in his tanner one.

"R-Rosette... you can't leave me. Please, if you go—I don't know what I'll do without you," the young devil cried softly. Inhaling a deep breath, Chrono pushed onward, "Please just hang on a little longer. P-please, please d-don't leave m-me..." Chrono pulled Rosette's pale hand to his lips, placing a delicate kiss on her palm. He let his lips linger on her soft skin, his eyes wandering up to meet hers.

"Ch-Chrono, I don't... w-want to g-go yet," The young blonde chocked out between gasps of breath. Sweat trickled down her cheek and mixed with the tears that too made their way down her colorless face. It hurt too much to see such a vibrant young woman taken away in her prime. No matter how much they wanted to doubt it, the group would leave with one less by dawn.

'_No,'_ he forcefully told himself. But still...

"Chrono... you think that maybe..." Sister Kate's words died off when she saw the ruby-eyed male press his lips once again to the soft patch of skin that was Rosette's wrist. She watched his eyes close slightly when he felt the slow beating of her heart under his mouth. As she looked on, she sighed.

Azmaria hiccuped but held the tears back—she was struggling, but succeeding. She had to try and be strong... for Chrono's sake. She too had felt the feeling of uselessness flowing through her. Her she was, the apostle of charity, and she couldn't heal the young nun that had been the first to show her true acceptance after the death of her family.

Slowly, her body moved of its own accord and she found herself at the side of Rosette's bed. A sad, small smile tugged at her lips when the exorcist grabbed Azmaria's hand in her own. For a split second, a bright light lit her hallow eyes showing the extent of her life.

"Az, t-thank you s-so much... for ev-everything," Rosette whispered hoarsely.

"N-no, don't you dare s-say that yet... you still..." Azmaria couldn't bring herself to finish the sentence. Another violent shake coursed through the blonde's petite body pushing her off the bed.

"Rosette!" the young demon called out. Her friends rushed to her side as the various monitors went off, the sounds violent beeping filling the room.

As she struggled to breathe, Chrono reached out for the exorcist. Both he and Azmaria took up spots, their hands grasping frantically at their friend's. Sister Kate found comfort under the hold of Father Remington. His arm was slung snugly around her shoulder, his hand lightly caressing her dark hair.

A few nurses swarmed the room, IVs and a defibrillator in toe. Try as they might, the couldn't get the young man to budge from his spot. Azmaria reluctantly gave up hold on Rosette and somberly walked around her bed to Chrono. She tugged gently at his arm but he refused to move. As the nurses looked on, the realized that they wouldn't be able to move the youth even if they wanted to; he was almost permanently stuck to the blonde's side.

'_His loyalty was always his strong point,'_ the apostle thought.

Sticking in a new IV laced with morphine, one nurse began to unbutton the exorcist's shirt but was stopped by a tanner hand. Alarmed, her gaze shot up and was met with two determined, ruby eyes.

"Sir?" she hesitantly asked.

"It... it will put her in more pain right? Doing this? It will only pro-prolong her l-life... Please, just make the p-pain stop," he requested through broken breaths.

"I..." the woman was stunned.

His eyes were so dark and saddened, like a heavy weight was crushing his heart. The nurse could see that he was greatly hurting to see the other woman in such a state. She nodded gingerly and called for another dosage of morphine to be brought in.

The sporadic movements that caused Rosette's limbs to flail jarringly ceased. Her eyes opened a hair and Chrono could see the tears that were forming behind her thick lashes. He could hardly stop himself from crying again.

"Rosette," he whispered, a small, pained smile on his face, "hey."

A twitch of her lips alerted Chrono to the fact that she was trying to smile. "H-hey yourself," she replied. She squeezed his hand slightly.

"..." Chrono was at a loss for words. He had known that she was going to die for years now but, in the actual moment, he couldn't find anything to say.

"C-Chrono... I wanted to s-say..." she began.

"Shh... Rosette, I know what you're going to say," he said, a smile pulling at his lips. This was a cocky move on his part but right now, he was willing to do anything to make her smile. "And yes, I do think you use your gun too much."

If Rosette Christopher had had the ability to smack the devil, she would have. However, the light that was brought to her eyes was enough to demonstrate her feelings.

"T-That was a low... a low blow, mister," she quipped.

Chrono emitted a small chuckle before a fog of seriousness fell over him. "Rosette, actually, there was something I wanted to say."

She cocked her head to the side (as much as she could) in curiousness. A bright blush pained his cheeks as he lowered his mouth to her ear.

"T-This is... it's hard for me to say..." he whispered, his breath tickling the shell of her ear. Truly it was. Though he had been alive for centuries, there had been only two women (well, technically, _one_ _woman_) that had captured his heart in such a way and it was now or never. The young woman before him had taught him to never have regrets; to live each day like your last.

'_If you're not going to live your own life, then who will?'_

Her words pulled at his heart strings. Now, he was going to tell her just how much she meant to him.

"Rosette, I wanted you to know that, for as long as I've known you, you've always held my heart. I... I love you." The heat that had blossomed on his face was now full force due to his confession. Instead of the odd look he expected from her, he got a smile and a trail of tears.

"F-Finally..." she breathed.

Startled, he looked into her cerulean eyes, "What?"

She quietly laughed (or tried to) at his "dear in the head lights" look.

"I said... 'finally.'"

A full-blown grin—even in this darkened moment—appeared on his face at her words. As he looked at her, awaiting a response of some sort, Azmaria, Remington, and Kate were watching the duo in awe.

A few moments later she replied, "Ditto."

Swelling emotions filled the young demon—elation, jubilance, anger, frustration, and misery—in that order. Nevertheless, he knew that he couldn't show sadness in front of the blonde woman. Instead, he opted for a simple action: a kiss.

His mouth swooped down to capture Rosette's lips with his own. It wasn't a dramatic, mush-filled kiss; rather, a gentle pressure and the occasional caress. When he pulled back he saw a tiny yet brilliant smile upon her face.

Gently and slightly hesitantly, he crawled onto the bed and laid next to Rosette. She positioned her head in the crook of his neck while one of his arms snuck under her head to help support her. Blissfully, the two stayed like that for nearly twenty minutes before Chrono turned and placed a light kiss on her cheek. When he received no acknowledgment, he realized, with dismay, that she had left him and joined the astral line once more.

Unlike the death of Mary Magdalene, the demon was not filled with as much anguish. In fact, he felt like a heavy burden had been lifted from him—not that he was calling Rosette a burden by any means. No, Rosette was a godsend; something he would forever be grateful for.

He laid a tender kiss on her forehead before pushing himself from her bed. As he did so, a nurse came into the room, a second IV bag in her hand.

"The... morphine?" she spoke dazed.

Ewan shook his head as he murmured, "I don't think she'll need it."

"It seems that Chrono eased her final pains," Kate replied in a hushed tone. Ewan nodded in agreement.

After her time of death had been called, the doctor tried his best to give condolences before leaving the mourning group to be with their friend one last time. Sister Kate brushed Rosette's golden bangs from her face, her thumb lingering on her forehead. The young apostle held the nun's lifeless hand in her own—her fingers caressing the palm, tracing little shapes across her skin. Father Remington could only watch as the two females fawned over the long gone exorcist.

Noting that one of the companions was missing, Ewan turned to see the exorcist's partner watching the rising sun intently. The billowing, white curtains had been pulled back to reveal a breathtaking sunrise. The citrine-colored orb of light was just beginning to breach the city skyline sending pale, yellow rays cascading over everything below. The warmth hit the large window, passed through, and struck the violet-haired youth filling Chrono with a feather light sensation. It was as if part of him wanted to continue berating himself but the sun's rays wouldn't stand for it.

It was then that an off-thought struck him. Staring at his clawed hand, he saw the light etch patterns into his skin. Quickly, Chrono snapped his eyes upward to see the light blue of the never-ending sky hit the darkness of the atmosphere nearly tens of thousands of miles up. There, somewhere between the ending of the clouds and the start of the stars beyond, was the perfect shade of blue. That specific color, someplace between the dark depths of Prussian blue and the clear pastel shine of powder blue, was the exact shade—the color of Rosette's eyes.

Through his grief, Chrono smiled; not a sad, helpless smile, but a full on, ear-to-ear grin. He knew that even though the love of his life was gone, all he had to do was watch the sun rise and he would be reminded of her. Right were the clouds ended and the stars began... that was where she was waiting for him.

She was always with him—he just had to know where to look.

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Well, there you go. (: I was planning on starting a 30 Kisses for Chrono Crusade but I couldn't brainstorm enough ideas—plus, I think I have _enough_on my plate, don't you think? :P Drop a review if you have time. Grazie! :D


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